Powerful Performance

Southwest Airlines is to give $620 million to its employees as part of its 2015 profit sharing plan.On 29 April 2016, eligible employees will receive the equivalent of eight weeks of pay or almost 16% of their eligible compensation.This is the highest total amount that the airline has ever allocated to staff through its profit sharing scheme.When the $620 million contribution is added to the organisation’s $325 million in employer matching and other amounts contributed to the Southwest Airlines’ retirement plans, the organisation will have rewarded its employees with a total retirement benefit of around $945 million in 2015.In addition to retirement benefits, the air carrier invested more than $672 million in employee benefits for its 49,000 of staff in 2015.Gary Kelly, chairman, president, and chief executive of Southwest Airlines, said: “Behind every milestone Southwest Airlines has celebrated our employees are the driving force. I’m incredibly proud of the teamwork and heart behind every accomplishment.“Our people have built one of the world’s most admired organisations, and they share in Southwest’s success with this third consecutive record-breaking profit sharing contribution.”read more

The State of Nebraska has introduced a new maternity leave donation programme to enable state employees to donate paid holiday days to colleagues taking family medical leave.The new maternity leave donation programme, effective from 8 January 2018, is applicable for new or expectant mothers, and is designed to help state employees who may not have accumulated sufficient paid holiday or sick days to cover the entire duration of their unpaid family leave period.Under the new programme, employees will be able to contribute their accrued holiday or compensation time to eligible colleagues working within the same agency department, subject to agency director approval. This will enable new or expectant mothers who are taking family medical leave but have exhausted their own paid sick leave quota to still receive pay during their time off.State employees can currently receive up to 12 weeks of statutory, unpaid, job protected leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), however employees need to use their own accrued annual leave in order to receive pay while away from work.The maternity leave donation programme can be used in conjunction with FMLA benefits. The programme is an expansion of the state’s existing catastrophe leave donation programme, which follows a similar format.The new benefit will not incur additional costs on the state because it is based on the donations of existing annual leave and compensatory time that has already been earned.Governor Pete Ricketts, governor of Nebraska, said: “The weeks and months following the birth of a child are some of the most important for the development of newborn children and the dearest to new mothers. Strong families are the foundation of the good life. We want our [employees] at the state of Nebraska to have the flexibility they need to be with their newborn children following their birth. This programme will give new mothers additional flexibility to invest their time, love and care in their newborn child.”Margie Bell, state personnel director for Nebraska, added: “This exciting offering for new and expecting mothers will make it easier for women to manage the needs of family and continue their careers in state government.”read more

Employee Benefits poll: A quarter (24%) of organisations help their workers manage workplace stress through the use of employee assistance programmes (EAPs).A straw poll of www.employeebenefits.co.uk readers, which received 110 responses, found that education on stress (19%) and yoga, meditation and massages (16%) were popular measures employed by organisations to help employees manage stress at work.Encouraging breaks was the method favoured by 14% of respondents. The same percentage opted for wellness days/weeks, while quiet working areas were the choice of 10%.According to research by project management software organisation Wrike, almost half (46%) of UK workers say they have searched for a new job because of work stress.The Wrike report, The stress epidemic: employees are looking for a way out, polled 1,600 employees and found that more than two-fifths (42%) of UK workers regularly lose sleep as a result of workplace stress.Just under a third (32%) of respondents to the Wrike survey admitted to losing their temper in the workplace through stress, while 31% said they had been prompted to stop caring about their work, and 29% admitted issues out on their friends or family.What is the main gift employees at your organisation will receive this Christmas? Have your say in our latest poll…read more

SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) – A driver was rushed to the hospital after, officials said, his car plunged into a canal in Southwest Miami-Dade, Saturday morning.Fire rescue divers pulled the motorist from the vehicle that crashed into the Snapper Creek Canal, located near Southwest 97th Avenue.Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Chief John Meic said an off-duty officer was the first person on the scene. “He got in the water, tried to make a search and rescue on his own. We showed up, and he got out of the water,” he said. “One of our drivers got in the water and they were able to get in the vehicle, and they did find one victim that they pulled out.”The driver was taken to the hospital in critical condition.The cause of the accident remains under investigation.Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.read more

PARKLAND, FLA. (WSVN) – Surveillance cameras captured the moment a man stole a purse at a Parkland gas station.Footage shows the victim with her attention turned to the pump when the subject pulled up. The driver stepped out of the vehicle, crept toward the victim’s unlocked SUV before opening the door and grabbing her purse from inside.He then got back into his car and drove off. Meanwhile, the victim never seemed to notice the act.The theft took place at the Chevron on North State Road 7, just north of Hillsboro Boulevard, on Sept. 26.Police are searching for a silver four-door Toyota Camry with dark tints.If you have any information on this theft, call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $3,000 reward.Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.read more

A government report out Friday shows 1 of every 13 visits to the doctor last week was for fever, cough and other symptoms of the flu. That ties the highest level seen in the U.S. during swine flu in 2009.And it surpasses every winter flu season since 2003, when the government changed the way it measures flu.“I wish that there were better news this week, but almost everything we’re looking at is bad news,” said Dr. Anne Schuchat, acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. An elementary school teacher in Texas died Sunday from flu complications after she had reportedly decided the cost of medicine to treat the virus was too high.Fox News reports that Heather Holland died Sunday, a week after she decided not to purchase medication prescribed to her because she thought the $116 price tag was too steep.“She wouldn’t go get medicine because she’s a mama. Mamas are tough. She just kept going. She had a job; she had kids,” Holland’s pastor, Clark Bosher, told Fox 2. “I think any mom does that. I don’t think she is being irresponsible. I don’t think she thought she was that sick. It happened so quick.”Holland had been prescribed the medication a week ago. Her husband Frank said he decided to pick up the medication himself on Thursday after finding out she wasn’t taking them, but said it was too late.“Friday night, things escalated and she ended up in the ICU,” he told the station. “The doctors got the blood cultures back and they had to put her on dialysis early Saturday.”Holland died Sunday morning, leaving behind her husband as well as her two children, ages 7 and 10.“I have to be strong for the kids but it’s still surreal, it hasn’t all set in,” Frank Holland said. “We’ve been together a long time, over half my life. She’s my best friend, my soulmate, my everything.” read more

On Wednesday afternoon, there was a similar incident at the same airport. A small plane had a rough landing and spun around.No one was injured in that case, and there was only minimal damage to that plane.The exact cause of Thursday’s crash is under investigation.Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. POMPANO BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) – A plane crashed Thursday morning after missing the runway at Pompano Airpark.According to Pompano Beach Fire Rescue, the single-engine Piper Cherokee 6 airplane overshot the Pompano Airpark runway, located at 1001 NE 10th St. The plane then crashed into a fence, around 10 a.m.The plane was having engine trouble shortly after take off.“As they landed, the plane wouldn’t slow down,” said Pompano Beach Fire Rescue spokesperson Sandra King. “They were going at approximately 120 miles per hour. They made a decision. There was no way they could land the plane. They tried to take off again. They ran out of runway and banked the plane, and that’s when they crashed into the fence.”A 50-year-old male pilot and 61-year-old male passenger were on board, but officials said they were not injured.“It’s a miracle that both of these pilots walked away with one scratch,” said King. “One of the occupants had flip flops on and was not injured. He had one Band-Aid.”Fire rescue said the plane has been deemed a total loss. read more

MIAMI (WSVN) – Students at a Miami-Dade elementary school received a lifesaving lesson, Thursday.Miami-Dade schools participated in the annual Learn to Swim program. Each year, close to 4,000 students throughout the county receive swimming lessons — highlighting the importance of water safety“Drowning is the number one unintentional cause of death for children ages 1 and 5,” said swim instructor Elaine Economyx. “It sometimes falls to number two. This is a national statistic, and Florida leads all states in drowning deaths.”“Considering Miami’s location, surrounded by water, with so many canals and public schools, learning how to swim, quite frankly, is something that’s fun, but potentially lifesaving,” said Miami-Dade Schools superintendent Alberto Carvalho.The program has been around for almost 45 years, with the goal of teaching up to one million swim lessons annually.Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.read more

MIAMI (WSVN) – Authorities are searching for a crook who was caught on surveillance video breaking into two sheds in Miami.Cameras were rolling as the thief broke into two storage sheds, near Southwest 34th Street and 23rd Avenue, last June.Police said he caused $50 in damage after taking off with a generator and $100 worth of tools.If you have any information on this theft, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $1,000 reward.Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.read more

NORTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) – An hourslong standoff in Northwest Miami-Dade came to an end after a man who had barricaded himself in a car near a Metrorail station surrendered to police.Miami-Dade Police surrounded the area where the subject’s brown Chevy Impala was parked, near the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Station, Monday morning.Officers shut down Northwest 25th to 27th Avenue and 62nd to 66th streets.Officials said the man was possibly armed and refused to get out of the car.He eventually surrendered and was taken into custody.7News cameras captured officers putting the man in the back of a squad car. He was taken away for questioning.The Metrorail station was temporarily closed due to the police activity. It later resumed service. Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.read more

SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) – Police are investigating after a pedestrian was fatally struck by a vehicle in Southwest Miami-Dade.Miami-Dade Fire Rescue responded to the scene near Southwest 142nd Avenue and 88th Street at around 6 a.m., Friday.According to Florida Highway Patrol officials, the victim was attempting to cross Kendall Drive when she was struck.Eastbound Kendall Drive was shutdown.7SkyForce HD hovered over the scene where the car involved could be seen with front-end damage and a broken windshield.Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.read more

MIAMI (WSVN) – A Miami driver ended up in Biscayne Bay after his car slipped off a boat ramp at the Pelican Harbor Marina.A 7News viewer sent in video of the driver on top of the vehicle in the water, Thursday.The driver and other good Samaritans jumped in to try and push the car back to the ramp. The group was finally able to hook it up to a truck and pull it out of the water.No one was hurt.Remember, if you see news happening and can do so safely, take a picture or shoot video and send it to: senditto7@wsvn.com.Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.read more

NORTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) – Two officers have been transported to the hospital after a crash in Northwest Miami-Dade.The collision between a police cruiser and another car occurred in the area of Northwest 62nd Street and 25th Avenue just after 1 a.m., Monday.The intersection had been blocked off but has since reopened.Rescue crews responded to the scene and transported the two officers to Jackson Memorial Hospital in stable condition.The cause of the crash is currently under investigation.Copyright 2019 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.read more

The DEA cannot accept liquids or needles or sharps, only pills or patches. Representatives from Change 4 the Kenai emphasize that the service is free and anonymous, with no questions asked. Facebook0TwitterEmailPrintFriendly分享This Saturday, October 27, Kenai Peninsula residents will be able to dispose of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Soldotna Professional Pharmacy. Sergeant Escott said SPD will also dispose of unwanted drugs throughout the year: “For the convenience of the public, they can come in at any time, day or night. There’s a red phone out front if someone’s not there, they just call Dispatch and they’ll let them in and there’s a box out front, they can just drop them off any time.” Soldotna Police Sergeant Stace Escott has helped watch over the operation in years past: “You know, there are many great benefits, the ease of it, the protection for our children. So many times there’s misuse of those drugs that are just freely obtainable by children in medicine cabinets over at their friend’s house or something like that. There’s that and the safety of keeping it out of the sewer system and making our water clean and all kinds of benefits.” The drugs are transferred to the Alaska Drug Enforcement Unit in Anchorage for disposal. The drug take-back day is being hosted by the Soldotna Police Department, Change 4 the Kenai and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), to prevent pill abuse and theft. For more information about the disposal of prescription drugs or about the October 27, Take Back Day event, visit Change 4 The Kenai.read more

Facebook0TwitterEmailPrintFriendly分享Vice President Mike Pence made stop at Anchorage’s Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, on Sunday in honor of Veterans Day. He also spoke about his efforts with both U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski, who was present Sunday, and U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan that they will continue to work on providing veterans with the ‘best healthcare in the United States’. Pence: “Thank you for your service at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. You make us proud everyday.” Pence: “With strong support of Senator Lisa Murkowski, who is here today, and Senator Dan Sullivan, who sends his regards, we are once again giving our veterans across the country access to the world class healthcare that you’ve earned in the uniform of the United States of America. Veterans Choice is now the law, and it’s a reality.” Pence during his remarks acknowledged the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, marked by ceremonies in France attended by President Trump. Pence stopped in Anchorage while his plane was refueled en route to Asia for a weeklong trip that will include stops in Japan, Australia and Papua New Guinea.read more

Micciche: “Senate Bill 90 is an idea, it was not my idea, it was brought to me by those user groups. Like anything else that I drop in this building, I take my time, and I come home and listen to what people have to say.” SB 90 aims to remove over half the current setnet permits on Cook Inlet’s east side. There are currently about 440 permits, the bill proposes to remove up to 200. Micciche stated he will continue to listen to “interests and concerns of setnet fishermen,” when it comes to the proposal to establish a program to buy setnet permits from those who want to exit the fishery. Micciche: “There is no money in the bill. This bill simply sets up the structure for those groups to go look for outside money, this is not state funded. The way that the entry commision works, it requires that we set up the structure similar to the bill, and that the setnetters would get the last vote if it were pass when it goes through the legislature. If it does pass the setnet fleet then they would have the opportunity, along with the other user groups, to find the outside funding.” The bill would require a confirmation vote by the fisherman within that designated fishery, with a voluntary sign up for the program. With a set price of $260,000 per permit, the whole program would cost $52 million. Senator Micciche: “I’ve had a lot of contacts from folks back home, and I thought it was important that folks realize that I have no intention of passing the bill this year, that was by design. This bill was brought to us by the sport and commercial fishing user groups to consider a solution for something we’ve been battling about for 40 years.” Facebook0TwitterEmailPrintFriendly分享Senate Bill 90, sponsored by Senator Peter Micciche, R-Soldotna, won’t see the light of day this legislative session according to Micciche.read more

Facebook0TwitterEmailPrintFriendly分享A community meeting will be held at the Cooper Landing School on Saturday at 6:00 pm, and at the Sterling Community Center on Sunday at 6:00 pm. Tune into KSRM 920AM to listen live. More visible smoke and fire activity is expected today, primarily south of the Sterling Highway within the recreation area. Three additional crews are arriving today to work on the fire. The fire is estimated at 148,298 acres with a total of 483 personnel. Direct fire line will be constructed toward Surprise Creek, to limit fire spread towards the Russian River. Along the Resurrection Trail, crews will work to improve contingency lines north of Sterling Highway and to identify control lines north and south of the highway to limit movement to the east.Kelly Lake and Engineer Lake Cabins are both still standing and intact. Firefighters have pumps and sprinklers running around the Upper Ohmer Lake Cabin. Please be advised that the Ready and Set lines on today’s map have been updated to provide for more timely notifications to the community.Saturday’s weather conditions will be similar to those experienced on Friday with north to northwest winds, above average temperatures and similar relative humidity levels. These winds will aid in transporting the smoke plume back towards the south to southeast, which is anticipated to improve smoke conditions today in Sterling. While some portions of the fire experienced slight rains Friday evening, there remains only slight chances for a stray shower through the weekend with little to no wetting rains anticipated.Continued updates will be posted as they are made available.read more

This post is reprinted with permission and originally appears here. In the pursuit of earnings, publishers have done two things – intensified SEO efforts, which creates fly-by ad revenue and established paywalls, which create fan subscription revenue.Remember these definitions:• Fly-by – Someone who visits once.• Occasional – Visitor to the site two to three times per month.• Regular – Visitor to the site one to two times per week.• Fan – Visitor to the site more than two times per week. Some fans are willing to subscribe through a paywall, and fly-bys are commodity impression to be bought and sold through exchanges, but what about the other 15-25 percent of the audience? The barbell focus on fans and fly-bys for revenue optimization overlooks a significant untapped opportunity in between the two groups. The regulars and occasionals as we call them represent an opportunity for publishers to create differentiated advertising products for advertisers such as an adwall.Users have to give time to get time, that is the underpinning of attention economics and online advertising. Advertisers underwrite user access to media or other digital goods in exchange for a moment of their attention. I was reminded of this exchange on a recent flight from New York. After take-off, I decided to use the in-flight Internet access which normally costs $9.95 for that route but was being offered for free if I would watch an advertisement. For me, the exchange of 30 seconds of my time for four hours of Internet access was a no-brainer. In gaming, companies like WildTangent are allowing users to watch advertisements in exchange for virtual goods to extend their playing time online. In exchange for watching the latest episode of a TV show, the Hulu user watches advertisements. These are all examples of adwalls where there is an exchange for watching an advertisement, i.e. the user is given access to digital media, games, etc. Unlike interstitials that are frequently dismissed, the adwall requires viewing and acknowledgement or no access is provided. Adwalls are intended to optimize revenue from the regulars and occasionals that make 15-25 percent of the audience. To illustrate the idea, let’s consider a couple of different scenarios of how fly-bys might react to an adwall vs. regulars. The first scenario is Demand Media. Demand Media is a company built on SEO. The Demand Media audience is mainly fly-bys. How much is an article on “how to window shop” worth? Would a fly-by be willing to watch a 30 second advertisement in exchange for access to the article they are likely to look at for at best a couple of minutes? For most people, the answer is likely to be no. In this case, the adwall turned away traffic that could have been served by commodity ads from an exchange.The second scenario is The Times of London. While some loyal fans have signed up through the paywall, many others have not. Surely, many non-subscribers and previous readers would be willing to watch a 30 second advertisement for a one day pass. In this case, the adwall extended the revenue stream that otherwise would have been a lost opportunity.Finally, ad units like adwalls are unlikely to erode any existing paywall revenue because the fans that would pay for access would also likely pay to avoid the adwall for convenience sake. It actually has the chance to generate paywall revenue. As our CTO stated, he would gladly pay Google $10 a year to get rid of the ads in YouTube.This post is less about the merits of an adwall per se and more about the merits of targeting higher value ad units to engaged audience members to optimize revenue. An adwall without targeting would most likely end like slate.com. The slate.com adwall probably failed because it did not target the adwall to certain audience members or around specific differentiated content. Consequently, the give-to-get equation was out of whack. Digital media cannot rely on a paywall to generate all the earnings for shareholders. Advertising needs to generate more revenue and an adwall is an example of just that. It creates a differentiated product for advertisers, a reasonable value of exchange for the audience and incremental revenue for the publishers.Matthew Shanahan is the SVP of strategy for Scout Analytics, which creates actionable revenue opportunities for digital publishers by tracking andtargeting user engagement.read more

The People Web site—which got a record 162 million page views the day of the wedding, and was more than double the amount from the last record set in February the day after the Academy Awards—undoubtedly helped push the sale of the publication through interactive features and promotion. There are about 13 million unique users that visit PEOPLE.com each month.The site had a live blog that invited users to talk with editors and each other about the wedding day events. Site visitors could consume more than ever about the bride and groom: an online ranking tool gave users the ability to select their five favorite outfits in the “25 Fantasy Gowns for Kate—Choose Yours” interactive game that allowed users to share their picks on Facebook; an interactive royals A to Z encyclopedia and map of London showed hot spots frequented by William and Kate; there was a royal tribute app on the People magazine Facebook page and a two minute review of the wedding highlights was also available to viewers, among other things. The marriage of Prince William and Kate Middleton was watched by individuals around the world and those that wish to hold on to the special moment will have the option to with the People magazine royal wedding special collector’s issue, which hit newsstands Monday morning. The 220-page feature has the most pages of any one issue of People magazine since 2007. Retail outlets were gearing up in advance to be able to sell the royal issue, which was released four days ahead of schedule.Stores that wished to cash in on the profitability of having a People collector’s item in stock were eligible to receive custom People royal wedding display bins. More than 15,000 were sent to various retailers and wholesalers.About 700 SuperValu grocery stores are promoting the sale of People’s special issue with Magnum ice cream—individuals get $2 off their purchase if they have both the ice cream and the special People publication. Special signage was also given to select retailers in April to promote the wedding issue. Though site visitors could do all that, only the magazine offered a 72-page royal wedding album spread, which will likely help boost sales. Representatives from People magazine did not respond to inquires for distribution counts.read more

Wired is getting creative with its advertisers, and having readers go along for the experience. In a new campaign designed by the magazine and client, user generated content is leveraged to provide a collaborative, multi-platform advertorial (below) that appears in the publication’s October issue.Using social news website reddit (owned by Condé Nast’s parent company Advance), Wired worked with Fearless Media and video game publisher Bethesda Softwork to design a multi-platform advertising program. Using reddit’s popular, virtual, crowd-sourced interview forum, IAmA, reddit users asked unfiltered questions to the co-creative directors of the anticipated video game Dishonored in a 4-hour “Ask me Anything,” (AMA) interview in July.With IAmA—which has been used as an online interview forum by everyone from President Barack Obama to magician David Blane—users submitted queries and voted up their favorite questions and responses in the discussion thread. The Dishonored 4-hour interview drew more than 27,363 page views and over 700 user questions and comments, which Wired then sourced for an advertorial. “We were talking about unique, never-done-before ideas,” says Keith Grossman, associate publisher of Wired. “We wanted something that would get people talking, interested and engaged.”In order to enhance engagement, the magazine promoted the discussion across its own social channels. Wired’s staff went through the user comments to pick out the ones that best captured the excitement of the campaign on the page. In addition to getting exposure through reddit, the client will also get its brand in front of Wired’s audience of 3.2 million readers. Grossman declined to comment on the pricing structure of a campaign such as this.“Wired has a nice gaming component, reddit has an incredible gaming component and a very participatory audience,” he says. “We realized we could use content from reddit to create an advertorial page that could live in our magazine. You need to let the idea lead.”To stay updated on the latest FOLIO: news, become a Facebook fan and follow us on Twitter!read more